All the Stars
by J. Walker-Gordon
Summary: Everything Zane knew about star gazing was from his late father. Now he wanted to pass that knowledge on to someone who was willing. And that's how he ended up in Pixal's backyard. (One-shot) (There's some Pixane if you squint...)


**Hey~**

 **Normally I would place this one-shot in "NFFs (Ninja Friends Forever)", but this story kinda feels more special. So enjoy! ^^**

* * *

Midnight

 _Brrrring!_

Pixal groggily turned to her phone on the bed table beside her. She rummaged around in the darkness for the device and when she saw the name on the caller ID, she blinked in confusion.

It was Zane.

"Hello?" she croaked, rubbing her eyes. "Why are you calling at this time?"

The silver-haired robot heard Zane give a sheepish laugh on the other side. "Sorry, Pixal. I called because I want to show you something."

She sighed. "You want me to go to your place. In the middle of the night."

"No need. I'm in your backyard."

"My WHAT?"

"You left the gate open. You're lucky I'm not a serial killer," he teased.

Before she could reply, Zane ended the call with a quick "Love you." Pixal swung her feet over the side of her bed and tied a robe around herself.

Peeking out the bedroom window and into the backyard, she saw Zane clad in a white jacket and jeans. He seemed to be setting up a tripod. Beside him lay a case for something.

Pixal gave a soft chuckle and went outside to join her boyfriend.

"So what's all this?" she asked, gesturing to the case on the ground.

Zane knelt down to unbuckle the straps. He carefully took out a telescope, its sleek metal shining in the moonlight.

"I got this for around $500 dollars," the Nindroid explained.

Pixal's eyebrows went up. "All that for a hobby you just started?"

"Actually, I've been interested in astronomy for quite a long time," he smiled as he set the telescope on the stand. Then it faded slightly. "I used to star gaze with my father."

"He sounded like a great dad," Pixal said sympathetically, reaching out to touch his shoulder.

"He was."

Zane looked back at his girlfriend. "He taught me everything he knew about astronomy, now I'll pass it over to you, if you're willing."

"Well, if it's important to you, it's important to me," Pixal said, fiddling with the telescope's eyepiece. "So how do we work this thing?"

* * *

"Certain constellations can be seen during certain seasons," Zane said, opening up a notebook he brought. "Since it's spring, the ones we can see are Ursa Major and Minor, the two Dippers, Leo the Lion, and a few others."

Zane adjusted the telescope to point at a particularly bright star. "That's Polaris. It makes up the end of Little Dipper's handle. Can you see it?"

Pixal looked through the device. "It's bright."

"Polaris is one of the brightest stars; it makes finding certain constellations easier because of its light."

The ice ninja proceeded to show Pixal where the locations of the other constellations were. He told her about the other ones that could be seen in the future months.

"Which one is your favorite?" asked the silver-haired robot, cradling a mug of hot cocoa that she had brought outside.

"My favorite constellation?" Zane turned to her as he held his own cup of the sugary liquid. "Well, I like all of them."

"You can only choose one," she grinned.

"Pegasus holds a special place in my heart," said Zane, after much contemplation. "It was the first constellation Father and I observed together. I was confused about how a cluster of stars would look like a winged horse."

He laughed at the memory. "He didn't know how to explain, so he drew a picture to help me understand."

Zane took the notebook and flipped to a beautifully drawn picture of Pegasus. Inside of the drawing, there were dots representing the stars that made up the constellation.

The ninja ran his finger over the lines. He looked like he was lost in thought; suddenly, he snapped out of it.

"How about you?" Zane inquired. "What's your favorite constellation?"

"I don't know, they're all pretty-"

"You can only choose one," he said playfully, echoing Pixal's words.

The green-eyed robot stared at her boyfriend in mock annoyance.

"Fine." She looked up at the sky. "I haven't seen many constellations, but I think the Little Dipper's my favorite."

"Little Dipper? I thought Leo or the Ursas might be more appealing to you," Zane said.

"Don't make fun of me," Pixal crossed her arms and shot Zane a semi-serious glare. "It's the first one you showed me. So it's special."

The Nindroid's smile went from teasing to gentle. "I need to show you more constellations as soon as the rest of the seasons come around."

"Mm-hm." Pixal tried to stifle a yawn, but failed.

Noticing, Zane checked his watch. He almost fell over. "It's 4! I'm so sorry Pixal, I didn't mean to keep you up this long!"

"No, it's fine. At least tomorrow is Saturday. Or is it today?" she said sleepily. "I think need to go back to sleep, though-"

She drowsily stood up and gently pecked Zane on the cheek. She opened the back door, then stopped.

"I'm looking forward to more nights like this. Just tell me before "breaking" into my backyard," she joked.

Zane laughed and scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "I will."

* * *

 **A/N: I think I just gave you guys a crash course in star gazing. XD**

 **#God'sNotDead #NinjaNeverQuit #SpeakLife**


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